Clean Air Watch to EPA Chief: Bush Misleads Public About Dangers of Soot

Clean Air Watch
1090 Vermont Avenue, NW, Suite 800Washington, DC 20005

For Immediate Release


CLEAN AIR WATCH TO EPA CHIEF:

BUSH MISLEADS PUBLIC ABOUT DANGERS OF SOOT


(Philadelphia, PA, March 8, 2006) – The non-profit Clean Air Watch today charged that the Bush administration is misleading the public about the health dangers of breathing particle soot pollution.

At a hearing today in Philadelphia, the clean-air watchdog group charged that an EPA proposal “was contaminated by politics and White House interference.”

Clean Air Watch was among many public health, environmental and citizen organizations criticizing an EPA plan to revise national air quality standards for
particle soot, produced by coal burning, diesel engines and other industrial and agricultural sources.

Frank O’Donnell, President of Clean Air Watch, noted these standards are “supposed to represent the federal government’s assessment – based on the best available science – of what level of pollution is safe to breathe.”

“By that measure,” O’Donnell added, “EPA’s proposal flunks the truth in advertising test.”

“The sad truth here is that the Bush administration is misleading the public about the dangers of particle soot.”

For the first time in history, O’Donnell noted, EPA disregarded its own science advisors on a national air quality standard, and proposed something weaker.

“When confronted with this fact, and asked why he had ignored his own experts, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson had no coherent explanation,” said O’Donnell. “In fact, he sounded like a naughty child who was caught fibbing about something.”

O’Donnell noted that unknown “White House censors” had tampered with the plan, as they have with government scientists with expertise on global warming. He cited several specific examples.

“The public should have the right to know if the air they are breathing can harm them,” O’Donnell said. “It is time for EPA to come clean. And tell the public the truth.”

Noting that medical doctors are urging the EPA to set significantly tighter new standards, while industry propagandists are arguing against that, O’Donnell added: “I implore you: Listen to the real doctors, not the spin doctors.”

The entire Clean Air Watch testimony is available at http://www.blogforcleanair.blogspot.com/